Artist Finds the Beauty in Melted Ice Cream

Food & Wine

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some people anguish over a bowl of melted ice cream. Others consider it a delicious, sugary, soupy treat.

Taste aside, artist Michael Massaia has learned to appreciate melted ice cream for its aesthetic beauty. His photo series Transmogrify, currently on exhibition at Gallery 270 in Englewood, New Jersey, proves that even though a melting ice cream sandwich might be a child’s nightmare, the running mix of colors can truly be a thing of beauty to adults.

You can see the colors psychedelically swirl together in a melted Neapolitan ice cream sandwich. Or watch Sonic warp into a blue puddle: Some might find it creepy, but Massaia captures it as a moment of colorful transformation.

It’s enough to make you think that playing with your food as an adult might not be a bad idea. Though don’t be surprised if your friends scoff at you after you proclaim you’ve become an artist and then show them a picture of a melted pint of Häagen Dazs.